A main event of my summer is the celebration of sonnets held in Winona, Minnesota each year. I will be there–and you are invited, too!
This year’s crop of winning sonnets is very accomplished. I am going to enjoy hearing them read aloud in the company of other sonnet appreciators. Hope you can join us!
RELEASE CONTACT: Heidi Bryant, entries@sonnetcontest.org
2025 Maria W. Faust Sonnet Contest Celebration
WINONA, MN — The official end to the annual Maria W. Faust Sonnet Contest is the announcement of the winners, a fun celebration hosted in person and online. The public is invited to attend on Saturday, July 26th at 11:00am at the Winona County History Center. (It can also be viewed online on the Maria W. Faust Sonnet Contest’s Facebook page.) The program will feature this year’s winning sonnets being read either over Zoom by the winning poets or in person by actors from the Great River Shakespeare Festival. Refreshments from the Blue Heron Coffeehouse will be provided at this free event. The winning sonnets will then be published on the website: sonnetcontest.org.
What started as a local contest sponsored by Winona’s First Poet Laureate and the Great River Shakespeare Festival has grown into an international phenomenon with a reach far beyond our community. The record breaking 2025 contest received entries from 18 countries and 41 states. Over 730 sonnets were submitted by 281 individuals, including 92 in the youth category. Prizes totaling $3,200 were awarded in the following categories: Top Four, Regional (4), Youth (4), and Laureates’ Choice (16).
About the Maria W. Faust Sonnet Contest:
The Maria W. Faust Sonnet Contest is an annual event that welcomes entries from around the world to Winona. The contest honors the memory of Maria W. Faust: a Winona State University graduate in Communications; a twenty-year resident of Winona; an avid supporter of varied local arts; and a lover of poetry. Ted Haaland, who passed away in 2024, endowed the contest to live on with the goal of keeping Maria’s love of poetry alive in our community and beyond.
The contest judges are Winona’s Poets Laureate James Armstrong, Ken McCullough, and Emilio DeGrazia, and Leslie Schultz of Northfield, MN. Heidi Bryant is the Managing Director and Johanna Rupprecht provides administrative support. Great River Shakespeare Festival is a partner and River Arts Alliance acts as the fiscal sponsor.
To learn more about the Maria W. Faust Sonnet Contest, please visit sonnetcontest.org or email entries@sonnetcontest.org.
